Cancer claimed victory over Mark Terrian’s body last week, but it never defeated the man’s spirit, according to family and friends.

The 53-year-old Oxford Village resident didn’t let his disease stop him from bringing home a paycheck to support his loved ones.

He didn’t let it stop him from living life on his terms and helping others when he could.

Most recently, Mark didn’t let cancer prevent him from taking one last trip with his family to ensure he left them with a treasure trove of happy memories to cherish.

“He did not waiver when it came to doing what he needed to do,” said Teresa Terrian, his wife of 30 years.

In the end, Mark’s body was no longer able to keep up with his indomitable spirit and he passed away on Jan. 23, 2019.

Teresa wants him to be remembered as a “wonderful” husband, father and provider who always tried to “be kind to everybody” and “do what he could for them.”

“He was a people pleaser,” she said. “He wanted everyone to be happy . . . He would do anything for anyone.”

Mark’s passing isn’t just a loss to those who knew and cared for him, it’s a loss to a community that went all out to support him after he was diagnosed with stage four rectal cancer that had spread to his liver in August 2015. The diagnosis was quite a shock to a guy who didn’t drink or smoke and bicycled 80 to 100 miles a week.

After receiving the news, Mark began fighting a public battle with the disease as family, friends, co-workers, neighbors and strangers all rallied behind him with numerous fund-raisers, countless donations and a seemingly endless supply of moral support.

“It’s just amazing how a little community can create such a big wave. I’m still overwhelmed,” Teresa said. “We were humbled by how people who had never met us before reached out and helped us. We’ve lived here for 21 years, but I just didn’t realize the impact our family had on this community. It puts me in awe.”

“The guy touched a thousand hearts,” said Michael Young, one of the Terrian family’s neighbors in the Oxford Lakes subdivision. “He knew a lot of people and a lot of people backed him up.”

Teresa was particularly moved by the fund-raising efforts of Ryan Austin, Andrea Sjoblom and Tammy Barber because that money allowed the couple and their three children – Carson, Dylan and Baillie – to spend Jan. 5-12 enjoying time together at Disney World and Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

“It was the vacation of a lifetime,” she said. “We just had such a good time together . . . We would have never been able to do that (on our own).”

Teresa believes Mark “mustered up” the last of his energy and channeled all of it into this trip “because he wanted to spend time with his kids” and “make memories” for them.

But that’s just who Mark was, according to Teresa, a man who always put his family first and made sure they were taken care of. She saw this as an extension of the 22 years that Mark served in the Air National Guard, an experience she described as a “cornerstone” of his life. His desire to protect his family flowed naturally from his desire to protect his country, Teresa said.

When it came to keeping up with what the kids were doing in school, she said Mark “might not have been very involved.” He let her handle those things, she explained, because “in his mind, he had to be the provider for us.”

“He was always the one who was getting up and going to work on Saturday or picking up the extra Sunday (shift), so we could do what we wanted to do,” Teresa said.

Mark worked at Barron Industries in Oxford Township.

Teresa is proud of the dignified and strong way her husband handled his cancer. She referred to him as a “badass,” a “superhero” and a “warrior.”

“He got up every single day and went to work,” she said. “He did not stop working until right before we went on vacation. He worked through everything. He didn’t do the ‘woe is me’ thing. He battled it face-to-face.”

Young was impressed by the way Mark never publicly showed just how much of a toll his cancer and the treatments was taking on him physically.

“Nobody really saw how bad it was for the guy,” Young said. “He always had like a suit of armor on him and a great smile throughout the whole thing.”

Inspired by Mark’s fight, Young wrote an anti-cancer song entitled “It’s Going Down.” With lyrics like “I’ve got metal, in my mouth; Taste the anger, get it out,” the song is a powerful and defiant anthem that declares war on a foe that silently grows while “you stream movies.”

The “metal” is a reference to the metallic taste cancer patients often have in their mouth, a side-effect of chemotherapy.

The song was part of an album that Young sold as a fund-raiser for Mark and his family. It generated approximately $1,700.

Mark refused to let cancer define him let alone slow him down.

In July 2016, nearly a year after being diagnosed, he participated in the 29th Annual Wish-A-Mile Bicycle Tour during which he pedaled 300 miles from Traverse City to Brooklyn, Michigan. He did this while undergoing oral chemotherapy and preparing for radiation therapy.

“That right there tells you a lot about the man,” Teresa said. “He was a very tough person.”

In addition to biking, Mark enjoyed hunting and kayaking. He was also a fan of NASCAR and the Detroit Red Wings.

“He definitely got the most out of life,” Young said.

Teresa expressed her gratitude to the community for helping her husband and family in their time of need.

“I just can’t thank (everyone) enough,” she said. “(Oxford is) a small town with a big heart. That’s what I always say.”

She agrees with what a friend wrote to her on Facebook – “If any community could have kept Mark alive (with its support and love), it would have been Oxford.”

Teresa wants to offer a “huge hug” to everyone in town because “right now, they’re hugging me.”

“It feels good,” she said.

In addition to his wife and children, Mark is survived by his parents Nancy and Lynn; in-laws Ken and Sherry Wright and Lisa and Gerry Deehan; and his four-legged companions Ozzy and Piper.

Mark’s funeral was held on Jan. 28 at LakePoint Community Church in Oxford.

Interment with full military honors will take place at Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly at a later date. Service information will be posted when details are finalized.